She told him she would always love him… when he told her, he’d met someone else.

“But you’ll never hurt me again,” she vowed.

He said nothing.  Because there was nothing to say.  He knew he’d broken her heart.

Before he left, she smiled.  “I want you to remember me smiling,” her last words, as she watched him go.

It took less than a year for him to realise what he’d lost.

Now, tormented, he searches for the one thing he can never have.   The smile for which he hungers.

The smile that continues to haunt him, night and day.

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    Carrie OLeary
    Carrie OLeary(@carrie-oleary)
    11 months ago

    Ha, that’ll teach him! Great story, Linda

    Thompson Emate
    Thompson Emate(@thompson-emate)
    Reply to  Linda Rock
    11 months ago

    Linda, I want to say a touching story with a salient lesson. I can remember Janet Jackson sang a song with the same line, “You don’t know what you got till it’s gone.”‘

    Lotchie Carmelo
    Lotchie Carmelo(@lotchie-carmelo)
    11 months ago

    Too late to realize. And now, he lost a diamond while busy collecting stones. Well done.

    Lotchie Carmelo
    Lotchie Carmelo(@lotchie-carmelo)
    Reply to  Linda Rock
    11 months ago

    You’re welcome, Linda.

    Preston Randall
    Preston Randall(@preston-randall)
    11 months ago

    I love this interpretation of the prompt, Linda. I think it was brilliant to show a completely different meaning and power to the “smile” than usual. The last line sent shivers. Excellent!

    Margarida Brei
    Margarida Brei(@margarida-brei)
    11 months ago

    Linda, your stories just improve and improve. Love the symbolism, simple sentences, almost Everyman use of unnamed characters and the heartache. Reading this story outside with rain on a hard roof, the timeless rhythmic pounding of the Caribbean ocean is a perfect setting enhancing your dramatic story!

    Christer Norrlof
    Christer Norrlof(@christer-norrlof)
    11 months ago

    In Sweden, there’s a saying that goes, “You don’t miss the cow until the stall is empty,” meaning that we often take good things for granted without appreciating them until they aren’t there any more. Your story reminded me of that saying. That doesn’t mean that I am comparing the protagonist in your story with a cow! Far from it. She is a brave and intelligent woman who knows how to best… Read more »

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